# The Diagnostic Potential and Regulatory Mechanisms of miR-3180-3p in Metabolic Dysfunction–Associated Fatty Liver Disease with Respect to Inflammation and Oxidative Stress

## TL;DR

This study shows that miR-3180-3p is a potential diagnostic marker for fatty liver disease and worsens inflammation and oxidative stress in the liver.

## Contribution

The study identifies miR-3180-3p as a novel diagnostic biomarker and explores its regulatory role in MASLD progression.

## Key findings

- miR-3180-3p levels are significantly higher in MASLD patients and correlate with disease markers.
- miR-3180-3p promotes oxidative stress and inflammation in liver cells treated with free fatty acids.
- SKI is a direct target of miR-3180-3p, and its silencing reverses protective effects against cellular damage.

## Abstract

miR-3180-3p has been linked to hepatocellular carcinoma progression, but its role and molecular mechanisms in metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) are still unclear. The objective is to explore whether miR-3180-3p serves as a diagnostic biomarker for MASLD and elucidate its function in mediating hepatic inflammatory and oxidative stress responses.

This cross-sectional study included 117 patients with MASLD and 100 healthy controls. Serum and cellular RNA were extracted for real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis. In vitro experiments utilized HepG2 cells treated with free fatty acids (FFAs) to mimic MASLD-related stress conditions, evaluating miR-3180-3p expression levels and its effects on oxidative stress markers (malondialdehyde, superoxide dismutase) and inflammatory cytokines (tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-6 (IL-6), IL-1β). Target genes of miR-3180-3p were identified using bioinformatics and dual-luciferase assays.

Serum miR-3180-3p levels were significantly higher in MASLD patients than controls, showing strong diagnostic value and potential as a biomarker. Multivariate analysis identified it, along with C-reactive protein (CRP) and high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol, as an independent risk factor for MASLD. Its expression positively correlated with triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, white blood cell count, CRP, Fibrosis-4, and oxidative stress markers (OA, PA), but negatively with HDL cholesterol. In FFA-treated cells, higher miR-3180-3p was linked to increased oxidative stress and inflammation. SKI, a direct target of miR-3180-3p, when silenced, reversed the protective effects of miR-3180-3p inhibition against FFA-induced cellular damage.

miR-3180-3p is a promising diagnostic biomarker for MASLD and contributes to disease progression by enhancing hepatic inflammation and oxidative stress via targeting SKI.